Automatic variable oil control valve for lubricators



Aug. 18, 1931. l

AUTOMATIC VARIABLE OIL CONTROL VALVE FOR LUmc'AToRs' Filed April 5, 19292 sheets-sheet 1 C. D. ALLEN' wl w wm ATTORNEY AC. D. ALLEN Aug 18,1931.

AUTOMATIC VARIABLE OIL CONTROL VALVE FOR LUBRIOATORS 2 Sheets-sheet 2Filed April 5,

Fll lfiul" k Mullin' rimm- Patented Aug. 18, 1931 .AmroMATro ,VARIABLE:OIL ...CONTROL NALEJOR ,'LuBRrcAmoRs The qflreserrt fnventienyll-'elates'ite fan iineproved automatic fvfurfbleoil eontrol Natve,

-1 :und in Jusing @this --typefo'f lautomatic Wariable eil control waivelin'eonn'eetien with hydro- `openund'idjust fthe 'regulatingvallvesetzfre quent intenva1s. `'Gbveusly jthis not only shoitenstheliteoffthe 'vul-Ves butl'the length-fof ftilne consumed in vthisopel-'ation`Hence itis impractical to require thelqperatorlto shutfofA Afpurp oseyofltliisiweution-isto prov-i le an /zrttaehinent forithe oilieontrolvzr1ve,fapp1i Y "ezrblefftheretm said devisefnolu'infgmeans@to insurethe ffeed from the roil control valve :mtern'aticullly 'variable to theJou'tlet, and

59 emmed tor'fltwo purposes,fene purposeibeimg Refer-ring to thedrawings, l ientifiesfthe easingof afliytrostatie lubricantor df3J-known type :of construction, preferably the"f"Detroit *85 vthis steamfleeing 4received ffrom yejiboiller tat reservoir by a water passage 5.lVith a water valve 6 open water enters the reservoir 7 and fills allthe space not occupied by oil. Due to the low specific gravity the oiliioats on the water, the weight of the column of water being measuredfrom the point 4a to a point 8 (and which is several ounces per squareinch) exerted upon the body of oil in the reservoir forces the oil in amanner .as indicated by arrows into the oil passage 9 and l past theregulating valve 1'0. Drop by drop the oil enters the sightfeed chamber11, whereby the drops are discernible through the bulls eyes 12. Thesight feed chamber 11 is kept filled with water through the condensationof steam entering from the equalizing passage 12a. The drops of oil ioatto the top of the water to a point as identified at 13 and are carriedby the circulation of steam from the equalizing passage 12a into the oildelivery pipe and thence to the point of lubrication, which in thepresent instance may be at the point 14, to where a pipe (not shown)from the air pump (not shown) may be connected.

A particularly important factor to be noted is that the boiler pressurehas no effect on the operation of the lubricator, because by virtue ofthe equalizing passage 12a, there is the same steam pressure at bothends of the lubricator. What causes the lubricator to feed has' beenexplained above-the weight of the column of water as measured from 4a to8, eX- erting its pressure on the oil.

To fill 01 refill-Move the oil control valve 15 to closed position,close the water valve 6 and steam valve 4c. Open drain valve 8b,

and then loosen filler plug 5a. By so operat. ing these parts thelubricator is allowed to empty, and when the lubricator is emptied ofwater, a little oil will come out through.

the drain valve 8b, then the lubricator is ready for filling. The drainvalve 8b is then closed, the filler plug 5a is then removed, and

through the opening 5b the lubricator may be filled with clean strainedvalve oil. The filler plug is then replaced, which under normalconditions can be seated by hand, but should a wrench be used because ofa worn seat, care should be taken to use .a suitably sized wrench thatwill not distort the plug l Bullseye locomotive type, i (which'is acommercially Vvwellvknown construction) a piece of waste should beplaced under the Iiller opening to catch any oil that otherwise would beallowed to run down the sides and especially over the air pump sightfeed glass. In very cold weather the oil may be heated so it will pourmore freely into the lubricator.

Thecontrol valve 15, which is of tapered contour, and its spindlev 16(which passes through nipples 17 and 18) is provided with a handle 19.This control valve on the bulls eye lubricator of the present type ishand operated, in order to controlthe `flow of lubricant to the place ofconsumption. This control valve is usually set to govern the flow oflubricant'into the ports 2O and 21, from where the lubricant passes intothe passages 22 and 23 and then past the needle valve 10 at the point 25through the passage 26, and drop by drop enter the sight feed chamber11. The lubricant that enters the passage 23 fiows past another valve10a similar to 10 at a point similar to 25 and thence into the passa-ge27 similar to 26, and then into another sight feed chamber 11a!l andinto the engine cylinder by way of an oil pipe 28, as shown in Figure 4.

To render this control valve automatic or rather to control the flow ofoil from the control valve automatically variable according to the steampressure as in the co-pending application filed December J19, 1927,Serial No. 241,195, which matured into Patent No. 1,724,865, a plug notshown but which formerly was threaded in the opening at 29 is removed.

The control valve is then removed, and its passage 30 may be reamed out,for the purpose of making it larger in order to provide a guide for acontrol spindle. The control valve is then replaced in its position asin Figure 3, and a spindle of a tool is inserted in the bore of thecontrolvalve, the opening 29 being reamed out and made larger, and thenthreaded to receivethe threaded extension 31-of the attachment, whichcooperates with the control valve for the purpose of controlling theflow of lubricant through the ports 20 and 21 and the passages 22 and23, the flow being automatically varied.v

This attachment comprises a casing 32 consisting of the sections 33, 34and 35, which are threadingly united, and the section 33 has itsextension 31 threaded in the opening 29 of the casing of the lubricator.The section 34 of the easing 32 is intermediate the section 33 and 35,the reduced end portion of the latter being threaded at 36 in order toconnect with a steam pipe not shown, so as to conduct steam, which maybuild up tov approximately one hundred pounds, intothe section 35, andthence into the bellows 37. The threaded extension 36 receives a screw38 and is provided with opposite openings or passages 39, through whichsteam passes. The interior of the extension 36 has an annular shoulder-40, against which va circular liso aaegsss S3 lahead"lll-.engages.llhisheadihfas opening-s -zor athis is inet .alwaysneeessary,'tl1at.isfto lill txpassuzges f ulrich MagisterA Withfth'e ,passages #or i9 'toipermit steam *to enter :section 235 .and 'thenee iiuto iii-he bellows.

On the interior olf the Vsection f3.4 :of the attachment .-fsuhstmitallymidway :its 'ends :aan asimilar shoulder 48 rproyi'died, iand againstwhich an annular dhrirge #i4 of .a @insular khead engages. Disposediloor .the `igseater guart fits rl'ength the .seotien 34 :is .a ltuhef4.6,

Stube 46 und v'-interp ose dhetween fthe screw #t9 Land the feircularlre'ad @,ithereby 'acting Tho fh'oll 'the annular lange against *theshoulder 'llhe vqfxuiapose folithis .spring iis Tvto set rthegp'ressnreirather itpo :determine .the fpressifire. @Eorinsta'ncetl adjustmentofihe .sspiiing :to zia ..certain :required .tension coupled with 'the.opening sof 'the itlniottle tto a certain fpo'intequalstlie'khoiler:pressureon the .fl uhrieator.

constitutes .aan tellement fof .the uittachment, -a re 'threadedtogether .as .are the sections 34 :and 35. interposed fbetweenitheannular fl-ange 58 ...aard the end section 33 "of 'stille :easing is.Ja .beldoms frllhe Lbelilows 37 is relatively twice uhe .iai-ea of 'thebellows 1.55 A.and when the tensien `fof `-.the spring .54 @adjusted to.substantially i 50 .ll-is. y.may flaeffedto'fthe steam vpiipesl and.-cyflindeus when itlnfottle ivis .fopen ite fa :eertaziai point, 4whichVwith fthe springttension equals boiler p res- MTsure yionth'elubricator. The wall .io-1f fthe :seo tion 34 `:has au outlet 'orificex56., :to fpermit off the escape of ssteam cor foil 1in-:ease =rofVfraotm'e fof feit'her '.ihelilows.

Ltle .operation of I:the .lliuhtieatou the water fderi-ved V4'from :the:condensation of steam :in fthe :condenser 2 "rztlo'ws 'through thepassage :iandfloats the @oil -to ith'e ,greater aip'pergpertion-@ofLtheereseiwoir all, there re ammini-ng an xairspa'soe .for iexp-ansimichamber 58 lfhetween the level dt 'the oil :luid the zupper end deifthev reservoir, dille foil a "ch ance for fiexpausiongthatmay :result.zin `van :excess steam pressure at 'the "point of :con-

This expansion space will K.also

'ferraille the operator fill the reseraoir .to Vm5.eapacitywwithoutfearifrdamageathough T19., sind theneeltlrrough'theldiamet'rica'lly op. *jposite sohenifngs 56@ #loi thecontrol fvalye .15,

dille diameter 'of [fthe passage `f3.0. 'Ishe enilarg-edv-:end 6l fof:the :spindle 5.52 :reciproc ates 'in @the passage f3.0 faccordin'g 4tothe 1 pressure. The greater intermediate portion -ofvthe zlspindler52 istherefore fof x.less .diameter than .fthe r-opposite 4.ends thereof, andfthe inner .en-v gla'rgefd :end 5.1 of `the i'sp'indle has fa. :central.fbore'zhavingfloranches 63. .These :branches 63 fopen Where the reduceddiameter totV the ispindle 52-zc1eases,fso thatfth'e oilean -lowv.either around the reducedfdiameter `of the.

.fs.pin.dle, sandjfinto *the Ibellows :52, or :into .the fsopenings@ andl2l: afndl: through :the passages The fact :is the fspind'le .controlsthe Voil Aor lubricant `at this point, `While ztheneedle .feed '-:ualuesl() and Illa heretofore werel :used .sto

-ioonurol the oileby hand However., with `.the

through :the outlet :passage :.67 .fand .thence lto ain roil :pipe s(not shown) to v an; air pump i (fnot shown) While idroip .feed leavingk'the fnoz- .zlesh'ows Iin'lFig-ure l (Whihpis right rhaek oit th'emuzzle 1.65 shown iin FgureQfor Ashown in Figure 4) passes out through'15a passage =(not shown) .and :leaves 'the flnbricator `at apointidentiiled at 28. .At this point 28an oil passage leading to 'an'engine cylinder mayhef'connectechisoizthat the lubricant oroil may beconveyed to the VAorigine cylinder. f.llhe 'Water passing through thepassage 5 is feontrolledflryithetwater valvefG. .As previmisly statedthe oil is 'o'reed "through .the passage "9 .andthecOntrOl 'Valve.15,hyhydrostatic pressure .previously explained, the rate :of1eedbein'g .controlled by the adjustment .ofithefneedle valves .10 Vanda.

.After VVleaving thefdischarge'snozzles6.5 and 68, the drop-s .oloilfloat up through th'ewater in the siglitiifeed1;cliaurhers,.andwhenftheoil :reaches apoint Ialsiidentiied at :113 it is picked lup .'hy vthesteam .coming .down through .the equalizing passagel'Qca which carriesit out :the iluhricator :into .the oil Vpipe (not shown.) `lout whichcommunicates 1with the passa'ge `267 :at 114, vand thence Ato 'the:steam =chest Lplugslocated Aat the `engine cylinders,

.steam chests or. steam pipes.

The oil control valve has a lever handle 19 and index plate 71, and isso designed that from the Closed position a half turn to the All openposition will open all feeds; or a quarter turn, the feed to air pumponly and vice versa. By moving the handle away from the All open or thepump position, the rate of feed to the different points can bethrottled.

While this attachment is automatic in connection with the lnbrieator itis obvious that the regulating feed valves 10 and 10a may still beadjusted by hand, in order to permit oil to be fed into the cylindersand valves, the quantity being approximately what is normally used.However with this improved attachment the feed regulating valves can beset or adjusted by hand, and when once said valves 10 and 10a have beenadj usted, the use of the oil control valve makes the lubrication aninstant operation and insures correct amount of lubrication under allconditions, that is should the locomotive be pulling up grade, ortraveling on level road, or going down grade, just the right amount oflubrication will be supplied to the various parts which needlubrication. The operator knows that as soon as the lubricator hasreached its proper temperature the oil will feed at the rate required.

The adjustment of the lubricator feeds in night service or where thedevice is inconveniently located is always a matter of more or lessdiiiiculty. As the control valve does v away with the opening andclosing of the different feed valves when starting and stopping thedevice it becomes a great convenience to the operator, and under allconditions, night or day, the operator can by the sense of touch alonepress the handle lever to this control valve in any one of the threepositions.

However the attachment as herein shown enables the feed of oil to beautomatically variable according to the steam pressure, as is set forthin the co-pending case previously identified herein.

The pressure from the boiler (approximately 200 lbs.) is turned into thelubricator in the regular manner. This pressure acting on oil inlubricator forces 'its way through the passages 59, and 52a, referringto Figure 3, into the bellows chamber a, causing bellows 55 to expandagainst the spring with the spindle or rod 52 attached, closing the portor passage 21, shutting oil oil supply to the port or passage 23.

In this position oil feeds to the pump in the regular way but no oilgoes to the steam pipe or cylinder. lVhen engine is started by openingthrottle and pressure in steam pipe builds up to approximately 100 lbs.,steam enters passages 39 and 42 and into bellows 37, by way of apertures37a expanding same against the action of bellows 55. The

bellows 37 being larger .in area than bellows 55, and bellows 37 beingassisted by tension of spring 54, force rod inward, opening the port orpassage 21 for the oil supply to enter the passage or port 23.

In this position oil feeds the pump, steam pipes or cylinder asregulated by individual oil feed valves. i

It is obvious that with the bellows 37 twice the area of bellows 55 andthe tension of the spring 54 adjusted to 50 lbs.,- or any otherpredetermined tension, oil will be fed .to the steam pipes and cylinderswhen required only, and not when standing. When drift-A ing with crackedor light throttle, the spring tension regulated accordingly, oil will befed to the cylinders'vand valves.

The invention having been set forth, what is claimed is:r y

1. In an oil control valve for hydrostatic lubricators comprising acasing having an oil passage, and provided with outlet ports, an oilcontrol valve mounted in the casing'and having passages communicatingwith the oil passage and the ports, an attachmentconnccted to the casingand having a spindle telescopically movable in the valve, saidattachment comprising a casing, expansibl'e means of different areas inthe attachment casing, said spindle having a head interposedbetween theexpansible means of different areas, said expansible means of differentareas being responsive to the variation of oil and steam .pressure inthe valve, to govern the position of the spindle with relation to theprts.

2. An oil control-valve, comprising a casing having an oil passage andprovided with outlet oil ports, a control valve having a passage andadapted for controlling the flow of oil through the ports, an attachmentcomprising a. casing including a spindle movable within the oil controlvalve, said spindle having a head, a diaphragm expansible means with anexpansible chamber on one side of said head', an eXpansible means ofdifferent area with an expansibleehamber on the other side of said head,the firstexpansible chamber adapted to receive varied oil and steampressure from around the spindle, the second eXpansible chamber adaptedto receive varied steam pressures, the expansible diaphragme beingresponsive to the variation of oil pressure on one side and'steampressure on the other side for actuating-the spindle and rendering theout flow of oil'through the ports automatically variable.

3. In an attachment for oil control valves for hydrostatic lubricators,the combination with an oil control valve, of a casing for the valveprovided with an oil passage and oil outlet passages, said control valvehaving outlet ports toassociate with the outlet passages, saidattachment comprising a casing having a movable spindle including a headand extending into the-control f valve and provided with passages toassociate with the outlet ports, an expansible chamber for the receptionof oil on one side of the spindle head, an expansible chamber of agreater area on the other side of said spindle head for the reception ofsteam pressure, the spindle and its head being responsive to thevariations of oil and steam pressure on one side and steam pressure onthe other side, to render the position of the spindle automaticallyvariable with relation to the ports.

4. In an attachment for oil control valves on hydrostatic lubricators,the combination with an oil control valve having a passage for thereception of oil and provided with outlet ports, said attachmentcomprising a casing having an expansible oil chamber and an exansiblesteam chamber, one of the chambers eing of greater area than the other,a spindle movable in the attachment casing and operatively associatedwith the outlet ports of the cont-rol valve, said spindle having a headinterposed between the, two chambers, which are responsive to thevariation of oil pressure on one side and steam pressure on the otherside of the head, for regulating the position of the spindle withrelation to the ports, thereby rendering the out flow of oil through theports automatically variable.

5. In an attachment as indicated comprising a casing and a movablespindle therein, the combination with an oil control valve having apassage, a portion of which movably receives the spindle, said valvepassage adapted for the reception of oil, said valve having outletports, said spindle having passages for association with the ports forgoverning the out flow of oil, the spindle having a head in theattachment casing, an eXpansible oil chamber on one side of the headcomprising an expansible bellows or diaphragm, an eXpansible steamchamber of greaterl area than the expansible oil chamber on the otherside of the head, said steam chamber comprising a spring tensionedeXpansible bellows, said oil and steam expansible chambers beingresponsive to the iuctuations of oil and steam pressure on respectivesides of the head, for governing the position of the spindle, andrendering the out flow of oil through the ports automatically variable.

6. A hydrostatic lubricator for engines having an oil control valvemanually rotat .ably adjusted to regulate the feed of lubricant to partsof the engine, a spindle valve reciprocable within the control valve,and means automatically responsive to variations in the steam pressurewith the engine throttle open sufficiently to render the feed of the oilaccording to said vari-ations in the steam pressure. v

7. An oil control valve for hydrostatic engine lubricators, comprising avalve member to be manually rotatably adjusted to determine? the r'ateLof oi'l' feed?, a1 reciprocating' spindlel valve 1nthe rotating valvemember and cooperatively associated there-with: to*

further regulate the oili feedf, meansauto matically responsive'to-the'action offoili onz one3 side ofl thet spindlel valve andi steaml on theother side to automatically govern the spindle valve relativel totherotating valve member, whereby the feed of oil may be regu'- latedresponsive to variations in the steam pressure.

8. An oil control valve for hydrostatic engine lubricators, comprising avalve member to be manually rotatably adjusted to determine the rate ofoil feed, a reciprocating spindle valve in the rotating valve member andcooperatively associated therewith to further regulate the oil feed,means automatically responsive to the action of oil on one side of thespindle valve and steam on the other side to automatically govern thespindle valve relative to the rotating valve member, whereby the feed ofoil may be regulated responsive to variations in the steam pressure,tensioning means for the spindle valve, and means for regulating thetensioning means, whereby when the engine throttle is open sufficientlycoupled with the tensioning means equals the boiler pressure on thelubricator.

9. An oil control valve for hydrostatic engine lubricators, comprising avalve member to be manually rotatably adjusted to determine the rate ofoil feed, a reciprocating spindle valve in the rotating valve member andcooperatively associated therewith to furtherregulate the oil feed,means automatically responsive to the action of oil on one sideV of thespindle valve and steam on the other side to automatically govern thespindle valve relative to the rotating valve member, whereby the feed ofoil may be regulated responsive to variations in the steam pressure,tensioning means for the spindle valve, and means for regulating thetensioning means, whereby when the engine throttle is open suliicientlycoupled with the tensioning means equals the boiler pressure on thelubricator, and means to permit of the escape of oil or steam fromeither or both sides of an element of the spindle valve, in case offailure of operation of the spindle valve operating means. A

10. An oil control valve for hydrostatic engine lubricators, comprisinga valve member to be manually rotatably adjusted to determine the rateof oil feed, a reciprocating spindle valve in the rotating valve memberand cooperatively associated therewith to further regulate the oil feed,means automatically responsive to the action of oil on one side of thespindle valve and steam on the other side to automatically govern thespindle valve relative to the rotating valve member,

whereby the feed of oil may be regulated responsive to variations n thesteam pressure, and means to permit of the escape of oil and steamshould the spindle valve operating means fail to operate.

TIn testimony whereof he affxes his sgnature.

CHAUNCEY D. ALLEN.

